No, I am not going to go on about the amount of money spent by PBS on a three-minute ditty as Anton Attard tries to realise his long-standing dream of winning the Eurovision. More of that another time.

No, this column is about the Prime Minister's wife. Or is it spouse? One is never quite sure with these things. Or rather the hot water one popular band got into for commenting on Mrs Muscat.

But first I'd like to take a diversion.

Just yesterday, the Nigerian singer Ado Halliru Daukaka was found in the forest after being tricked into a car and kidnapped a week ago.

According to the singer, who is now recovering in hospital, the kidnappers had driven him out of Yola city and then played his new song, and began asking him why he had recorded a track mocking politicians.

"They threatened me and said they would take my life and repeatedly asked why I was criticising politicians and warned me to stop or lose my life," Daukaka said.

Meanwhile over on the other side of the world, in the ‘Evil Empire’, I mean in the US, some people were getting rich selling bumper stickers and T-shirts with the words ‘Trump the Bitch’. The ‘Bitch’ in question was Hillary Clinton, and there was much controversy about the slogan.

Mario Vella of Brikkuni.

According to the BBC website: “Despite the media outrage, both men and women at a rally in West Virginia told the Washington Post they thought the items were "funny". They liked the way the shirts defied political correctness, something the presumptive Republican nominee has railed against.”

And finally in Malta the lead singer of a group who made some snide remarks about the Prime Minister’s wife (or is it spouse, hard to tell these days!) find themselves banned from performing at a beer festival.

No big deal there you may say. After all a rock ‘n roll band is doing what a rock n roll band should do: cock snook at authority, twisting the nose of the ruling class. And beer festivals come and go.

And in any case what has this case go to do with the other cases? Nothing and everything, to be honest.

In the case of the Nigerian singer, now safely in hospital, we have yet to establish who was behind the kidnapping. But at this point we can safely say it was not the government.

In the US of A, the right of free speech is sacrosanct, so no reaction from the authorities there either.

Whereas in Malta… well let’s just say there was a bit of a kerfuffle.

There is no question that Mario Vella, the lead singer of the band Brikkuni is one of those people who seems to have lost the off switch between his inner thoughts and his mouth (or his keyboard). Subtlety is not a word or thought that passes often through his mind. But then again where would rock ‘n’ roll be if you could invite the band to your great aunt’s 100th birthday anniversary?

And that would all be par for the course as far as Farsons were concerned (after all, all they are interested in is selling more beer).

But then the government’s communications meister got offended at what Mario Vella had to say about Mrs Muscat’s latest charity swim. And decided to blog about it.

And kapow! Concert was called off.

He may very well have broken a lance on behalf of a damsel in distress, but he may have caused more damage to his own side in the interim. In any case, he has not done himself, Mrs Muscat or his government any favours

Now let’s get things straight: Mario Vella's comments were hardly the stuff that good writing is made of, it doesn't even qualify as good insults. But that is not the point.

The point is that the blogger in question was Glenn Bedingfield.

And yes, I know what you are going to say, that Bedingfield was writing in his personal capacity. And the only answer to that is codswallop. If Bedingfield were writing in his own personal capacity, then frankly Farsons would not have blinked an eyelid.

If I were to say that I think that Glenn Bedingfield looks not unlike the human version of a Psychrolutes marcidus (you can look it up) - which I won't - that is a personal comment.

If Bedingfield writes in his blog he thinks Bank A is defaulting, it will not be construed as a personal comment. That’s the difference. (NB: no banks were hurt or made to default in the production of this article).

The reality is that what we have here is State-funded cyberbullying.

Which brings us to the issue of Farsons. Many said that Farsons had to ask Brikkuni to drop out as they had to protect their ’brand’.

Well I am not sure that kowtowing to State bullying is conducive to brand protection, so well done to Mistura, the rock band that was asked to replace Brikkuni for seeing through that and realising that when private enterprise kowtows to state bullying it is also damaging its brand.

As to Mrs Muscat’s charity swim, I will leave my comments for another time.

But as for Bedingfield’s attempt at gallantry and championing knight on a white horse, he may very well have broken a lance on behalf of a damsel in distress, but he may have caused more damage to his own side in the interim. In any case, he has not done himself, Mrs Muscat or his government any favours.